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September 5, 6, & 7, 2008 will be the dates for the 2nd Annual Greenwood Village Arts Festival.
Enjoy the atmosphere of a street fair with local merchants. Featuring Antiques, Food, Local Retailers, Salons, and Local Artists!
This years Greenwood Village Arts Festival is in a NEW LOCATION.
Cherry Hills Marketplace 5910 S. University Blvd. Greenwood Village, CO 80121
- Friday the 5th: Noon-6PM
- Saturday the 6th: 10AM-6PM
- Sunday the 7th: 1PM-6PM
So if you are looking for something to do this weekend, Have at it!
Colorado maintained its slot as the 3rd leading state for it’s ability to sustain high-tech industry. According to Milken Institute’s 2008 State Technology and Science Index, Colorado maintained it’s spot at number 3 in the country. Massachusetts and Maryland ranked 1 & 2, while California dropped to number 4.
The index utilizes 77 indicators categorized into 5 components:
- Tech Strength in research and development
- Entrepreneurial Activity
- Education
- Concentration of Scientists and Engineers
- Prominence of the Tech Sector in the overall community
Colorado ranked in the Top 5 states in ALL 5 categories!
The strength of Colorado in the Tech Sector has helped diversify our economy from an Energy only powerhouse. This diversity will help the State avoid the wild ups and downs in the housing market that have been prevelant over the past 40 years.
Just another reason that the Denver area is a great Real Estate Investment!
Protestors beware, the Denver Police department is ready for “Mass” arrests if needed. I find the comments by the a few getting ready to protest funny. If you’re so worried about the way you will be treated in custody, DON’T BREAK THE LAW!
Using personal loans for the purpose of debt consolidation is silly, especially if you have no pending mortgage or expenses like a travel insurance.
The 2008 Parade of Homes in Denver kicked off last week, and will run through Labor Day. The Parade is an annual showcase of high end homes, with trendy, high end finishes.
This years version is hosted at Solterra, in Lakewood, Colorado. (Click here for map and directions) The subdivision is brand new, and will be a great little community. Located on the far west side of Metro Denver, at approximately C-470 and Alameda, it sits atop some high ground with good views to the south. Unfortunately, it is currently a bunch of vacant lots (sans the Parade homes), and with the housing market in it’s present state, that will be the case for a few years. So don’t look for many amenities, such as grocery stores, moving in any time soon.
Historically, the Parade has been a great place to see the latest trends in design and architecture. But recently, it has become an effort to “one-up” the next guy. Who can put in the biggest home theater etc…
The biggest trends I saw:
- Fabulous Outdoor Living Spaces. These homes added a ton of liveable sq. ft. outside of the main home in the form of covered patios and decks, etc. Included outdoors are kitchens, grills, entertainment areas with TV’s etc.
- Large Sliding Glass Doors to Access the outdoor space. The outdoor space was married to the indoor space with large (some up to 12 ft. wide) openings from the home to the patio/deck. I really liked this feature and believe it will continue to be a dominating trend in the future.
- HUGE Wine Cellars. Not so new, but a continuation of bigger and better wine cellar/tasting rooms.
- Smaller Home Theaters. Home theaters have gotten smaller, and certainly not as important to the whole design/build concepts being used.
- Smaller Bedrooms. All bedrooms seem to be getting smaller, and not taking up as much of the homes square footage. The masters still offer great bath and closet space, but the actual bedrooms are trending smaller.
So is this years Parade of Homes worth a darn?
Last years Parade of Homes was a huge bust, with very few of the homes actually selling, and a couple even ending up in Foreclosure. I’m sad to say, this year may be no different. I was very disappointed in the properties! Check out some mini tours of a few of the homes.
These homes are OVERPRICED for what you get. The location is OK, but not great, the community is one of $500,000+ homes, not $2,000,000. They are pretty nice, but the bottom line is if you are looking to spend $2,000,000 +/- on your next home, stick to Cherry Hills, Greenwood Village, and many of the old Denver neighborhoods!
photo credit: Skyriser / Lix
Tomorrow, July 26th is the Annual Greenwood Village Day! This event is one of the reasons Greenwood Village is unlike most other municipalities.
Every resident is invited to attend a fabulous, FREE event, celebrating those who live in Greenwood Village. Starting at 2pm and running until 10pm this is a big party! Specifically planned to make sure the whole family enjoys themselves, the day includes events, activities, games and food!
This is one of the events my family attends EVERY year, it’s truly great!
Everyone gets a free meal, and T-shirt. The one catch you need a ticket! But it’s pretty simple, To pick up your tickets, simply go to City Hall, show proof of residency and that’s it!
Here is a list of some of the events and the schedule:
2pm-7pm Fun, Games, and Activities
Pre-School Astronaut Vests, Rocket Making, Space Alien Chess, Planet Painting, Solar System Puzzles, Handcasting, Flying Trapeze, Airbourne Adventure, Rocket Inflatable Jumper, Mars Mining, Wrecking Ball Inflatable, Rocket Launch Area, Dr. Adam’s Bomb Lab, and Much More!
4pm-7pm Dinner, Ticket Required!
4pm-6pm Day Stage - Live Music from “The Spin”
8pm-9:15pm Night Stage - Live Music from “Triple Nickel”
9:15pm-9:45pm FIREWORKS!
In case of rain, the Concert and Fireworks will be re-scheduled for Sunday July 27th, from 7pm-9:30pm.
The City and County of Denver announce the traffic plans for next months Democratic National Convention.
The major areas of concern will be two major thoroughfares through the city, Speer Blvd., and Auraria Pkwy. will be closed for the majority of the week.
Trust me, this will be a mess. You don’t want to be anywhere near Downtown Denver during the last week of August! Click here for a complete description of the gridlock that will be!
Arapahoe County Colorado residents now have a way to save on the ever-rising costs of perscription drug costs. On July 3rd the County Commissioners announced the program.
Commissioner Susan Beckman said:
“Using the NACo prescription discount is easy, simply present it at a participating pharmacy. There is no enrollment fee and no restrictions or limits on frequency of use. Cardholders and family members may use the card any time their prescriptions ar not covered by insurance.”
The card will save residents 20% off the retail price of commonly prescribed drugs and may be used by all Arapahoe County residents regardless of existing insurance coverage, age or income level. The cards are accepted by more than 90% of local pharmacies.
An interesting note, discounts also apply to pet medications!
You may get your card at Arapahoe County offices, the South Metro Denver Chamber, and many libraries in the county. For full details and all locations to get your card, see the Arapahoe County Official Page. You may also call 1.877.321.2652
The annual Cherry Creek Arts Festival is upon us! July 4th, 5th and 6th are the dates for one of Denver’s most awaited annual events. The area of Cherry Creek North is shut down to traffic and opened up to over 350,000 people looking to enjoy Art, Music and Food!
View Larger Map
With 100’s of artists displaying their wares, almost 50 musical acts performing on 4 different stages, over a dozen restaurants offering their specialties and an historically great fireworks display, the Cherry Creek Arts Festival is one of the don’t miss events in the entire Denver Metropolitan area.
Of course the festival is Kid Friendly, and offers a FREE arts and crafts area for the kids. Artivity Avenue, is the reason my kids LOVE spending time at the festival (the Ice Cream doesn’t hurt either!)
For complete information, including Band Schedules, visit the official site of the Arts Festival here.
photo credit: John Beagle
I just stumbled on a great site for Garage Sale enthusiasts. Whether you’re buying or selling this site is sure to be a great resource. This site appears to aggregate Garage Sale info and post it in a tidy google map application. Very cool! Now you can make your own, optimized, Treasure Map.
You can select your city, or state or zip code and GSalr provides you with a map showing where Garage, Yard, and Estate sales are being held. For the chronic Garage Saler, there is also an option to receive a weekly email, showing where that weekends sales are being held.
If you are planning a sale of your own, you have the ability to add your sale to the site for everyone else to find!
I’ve included a link for you to find Denver Metro Area Garage Sales!
Happy Treasure Hunting!
Well let’s expand that to the entire Denver area. Dino’s is actually in Lakewood, but it is great. For over 15 years my family has made a special occassion out of going to this great restaurant!
Very family friendly, you can expect an awesome meal at a great price. If you are looking for fancy italian food, and a big price tag, you will hate Dino’s. If you want GREAT food, at reasonable prices, put it on your short list.
Some of my Favorites:
Meatball Sandwich. Large homemade meatballs, on bakery fresh bread. I promise, you won’t need anything else, it is large and delicious.
Spaghetti with homemade noodles, is also worth the trip! I’m not sure why there are so few restaurants in the area that have the big, fat, homemade noodles. But I am sure that I love them! You can get either meatballs or sausage.
Lasagna. This one of the specialties of the house. It is a huge slab, and as good as you’ll find anywhere!
My kids love the Ravioli. Homemade, and stuffed with yummy goodness. They also have a half and half dinner, where you get half Ravioli and half Spaghetti. I would recommend this if you are having trouble deciding!
Every meal starts with a salad. Don’t ask for anything special, because it is one size fits all! Iceberg lettuce, some grated carrot, homemade italian dressing, topped with a pepper and breadstick.
Don’t forget dessert! They have great pie! My favorite is blueberry, a-la-mode, of course!
- Address: 10040 W Colfax Ave, Lakewood, CO 80215-3908
- Phone: (303) 238-7393
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